Crypto hits the main stage at Web Summit in front of record crowds

by · November 7, 2022

Portugal’s capital Lisbon has established itself as the spiritual home of one of the world’s biggest technology events. Web Summit has called Altice Arena home since 2016 and attracted a staggering 71,000 people in the last edition of the conference.

The effect of the event on the city was palpable. An estimated 540,000 people call Portugal’s captivating, hilly capital home, and the influx of participants from around the world made for a busy week on the less cobbled streets and busier roads.

The Ponte 25 de Abril bridge, which connects Lisbon with the municipality of Almada to the south.

It is not surprising that the event is a rallying point for the city, which continues to establish itself as a technology hub in Europe. The Web Summit continues to play a role in this, with Lisbon rated as an alpha-level global city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network.

Global industry leaders from a wide range of sectors were joined by prominent politicians, celebrities, actors and athletes who find themselves at the intersection of technology and their respective spheres of influence. Ukraine’s First Lady Olena Zelenska delivered a keynote speech on opening night as the country continues to fight Russia’s invasion.

Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska speaks during the opening night of Web Summit 2022. Credit: Jose Val Bal.

The cryptocurrency space was also top of mind on opening night as Binance founder and CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao brought the ecosystem to the fore in front of a packed house at Altice Arena.

CZ unpacked Binance’s $500 billion investment in Twitter, his long-term view on the rising value of cryptocurrencies and the growth of blockchain-powered Web3 features. It was the first time a figure from the crypto space spoke at the event’s opening ceremony, signaling cryptocurrency and blockchain’s growing influence in the global tech ecosystem.

Cointelegraph’s Gareth Jenkinson with Binance CEO Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao at a community meeting in Lisbon.

A dedicated Crypto section of the Web Summit app guided attendees to the various stages around the expansive Altice Arena grounds, with the stadium and five massive tents housing exhibitors and presentations from the world’s top technology companies and emerging startups.

Related: Sandbox co-founder explains how the metaverse has evolved for brands: Web Summit 2022

Some of the most prominent projects from the cryptocurrency and Web3 space were present. Yuga Labs CEO Nicole Muniz was on hand to provide insight into the explosion in popularity of Bored Ape Yacht Club on the main stage inside the Altice Arena:

“What we’ve done with BAYC and later with CryptoPunks and MeeBits is to provide commercial IP rights so that exclusive ownership is something unique to this space that empowers consumers to become owners, which is a paradigm shift.”

Cointelegraph also took the stage alongside another prominent metaverse platform as chief operations officer and co-founder Sebastien Borget delved into the history and future of The Sandbox in a wide-ranging conversation on the Content Makers stage.

Sandbox COO and co-founder Sebastien Borget on stage with Cointelegraph’s Gareth Jenkinson at Web Summit 2022.

Devin Finzer, CEO and co-founder of OpenSea, the world’s largest nonfungible token (NFT) marketplace, also weighed in on the popularity of NFTs and the importance of their influence on creative economies. Finzer emphasized that NFTs are a generic tool that attracts a different market segment away from people interested in traditional cryptocurrencies:

“These are people who are excited about art, collectibles, and engagement with creators. NFTs, especially in the creative economy, enable creators to create digital items that can be instantly monetized and connected to a fan.”

Web3 and NFTs have already been well incorporated into the world of sports. Cointelegraph sat down for a one-on-one interview with Jorge Urrutia del Pozo, Dapper Labs’ Vice President of Soccer, to unpack their involvement in Spain’s LaLiga and the recently launched Golazo video aggregator platform.

After building the wildly popular NBA Top Shots platform, which produces NFTs featuring video highlights from America’s top basketball league, Dapper Labs is looking to further the use of blockchain-powered Web3 collectibles across the world’s most beloved sport:

“It’s a very interesting opportunity for us to bring tens of millions of people on board blockchain. That’s how we see sports in general and football in particular. There’s massive reach and the intensity of the fandom – it’s a huge opportunity.”

Another major player bridging the gap between blockchain technology and sports was prominent at the Web Summit. Socios.com CEO Alexandre Dreyfus took to the main stage inside the Altice Arena alongside former Italian footballer Alessandro Del Piero to unpack blockchain’s impact on fandom in modern sports.

Socios.com and Chilliz CEO Alexandre Dreyfus and Cointelegraph’s Gareth Jenkinson inside the speaker lounge at Web Summit 2022.

Cointelegraph caught up with Dreyfus after the panel discussion, who highlighted the main reason behind Socios’ creation of fan-driven tokens ecosystems to bring together teams and their supporters:

“The question was, what can you create that’s both valuable to a fan and scalable to a team? We think two things matter to a fan. One being recognized, and two having a voice. That recognition, that social status, we thought we could do tokens.”

Web3 gaming was another topic of interest on the Content Makers stage. Cointelegraph moderated another panel with Bozena Rezab of Gamee and William Quigley of WAX, which explored the promise and difficulty of building Web3 games built on play-to-earn mechanics.

Gamee co-founder and CEO Bozena Rezab, WAX co-founder William Quigley and Cointelegraph’s Gareth Jenkinson during their panel, “Building a Games Company with a Web3 Mindset.”

Rezab stressed that developers or studios building Web3 games should be more focused on creating good experiences and creating value and avoid adopting blockchain technology for the sake of novelty. The Gamee founder highlighted the importance of thinking about the distribution of value and how best to use the technology:

“It shouldn’t be tech-first thinking like ‘this is a cool technology and we’re going to use it.’ It’s more about how am I going to use this to create value and create something that people are excited about.”

The Web Summit also provided the platform for projects to announce new offerings. Interlay used the conference to announce the launch of a suite of decentralized applications (DApps) to power Bitcoin (BTC). Decentralized finance (DeFi) offering that allows users to lend, trade, borrow against and earn returns on BTC holdings.

Cointelegraph’s editor-in-chief Kristina Lucrezia Cornèr hosted a series of panel discussions focused on the emergence of Web3 tech hubs around the world, as well as a roundtable discussion on how to present startups and projects for coverage to top journalists.

Cointelegraph’s editor-in-chief Kristina Lucrezia Cornèr on stage at the Web Summit in Lisbon.

Cointelegraph CEO Wes Kaplan also took to the stage to moderate a discussion around media monetization and how news companies are tackling this complex topic.

The Web Summit brings the world of technology together for one of the biggest events on the global calendar. The 2022 conference proved that the cryptocurrency and blockchain ecosystem has established itself as a growing player in a space dominated by the likes of Google and Apple, and will continue to do so as Web3 adoption increases.